My Money Planet has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. My Money Planet and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. The recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities.
Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card offers 2.5% cashback on the first $10,00o per month in spending. Cashback drops to 1.5% thereafter. But you will need to have an Alliant High-Rate Checking with at least $1,000 in balance to qualify for the 2.5% cashback. Let’s dive in.
Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card Review
Rewards
The card offers tiers of rewards.
- Tier One rewards – 2.5% cashback on the first $10,000 per cycle, 1.5% thereafter. Requires a $1,000 balance in an Alliant High-Rate Checking account for the full quarter before you can earn the 2.5% cashback
- Tier Two rewards – 1.5% cashback, no limits
Tier One offers 2.5% cashback on the first $10,000 in spending per month. To qualify for Tier One rewards, you must have an Alliant High-Rate Checking with at least 1,000 in daily balance in the preceding quarter. So if you are a new card holder, you will NOT earn the 2.5% cashback after the first quarter. Your cashback during the first quarter will only be 1.5%, which is called Tier Two rewards. You may only earn only 1.5% cashback for 6 months depending on when you apply for the card.
Fees
No annual fee
No foreign transaction fee
Other benefits
- Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver – If you use the Alliant Visa Signature Card, you can get collision damage waiver coverage for rental cars.
- Travel Accident Insurance – The benefit is up to $100,000 and covers accidental dismemberment and death. It doesn’t cover sickness.
- Extended Warranty -Adds up to one year of warranty if the manufacturer’s warranty is three years or less. For warranties less than a year, the warranty is doubled.
Cons
- The card offers no sign up bonus
- Alliant has changed the terms on this card multiple times. The card once offered 3% cashback. That was reduced because it wasn’t profitable for the bank. Alliant reduced the cashback to 2.5% and added an annual fee. Then the annual fee was removed but a $1,000 minimum balance in a high-yield checking account was required to get the 2.5% cashback. The bottom line is that Alliant can change the cashback on this card at any time. So I prefer to have a fallback card in case Alliance makes unfavorable changes to this card.
Other cards to consider
Wells Fargo Active Cash Card
The card offers unlimited 2% cashback. If you spend $1,000 in the first three months, you can get a $200 sign-up bonus. In addition, the card offers up to $600 cell phone insurance with a $25 deductible. The card has no annual fee. While the cashback for the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card is lower than the Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card, you get a $200 sign-up bonus and additional perks.
FNBO Evergreen Card
In many ways, the FNBO Evergreen card is similar to the Wells Fargo Active Cash Card. This card also offers unlimited 2% cashback with a $200 sign-up bonus if you spend $1,000 in the first three months. The card has no annual fee.
Citi Double Cash Credit Card
The card offers 2% unlimited cashback but has no sign-up bonus. While the lack of sign-up bonus is disappointing, the card offers ThankYou points which can be redeemed for cash or transferred to participating airline or hotel partners.
Bottom Line
Alliant Visa Signature Credit Card offers 2.5% cashback which is compelling in the current cashback landscape. But to get the 2.5% cashback, you will need to maintain a $1,000 deposit at Alliant High-Rate Checking account for a full quarter before earning the rewards. Card with 2.5% cashback are hard to come by, especially without an annual fee. So it’s worthwhile to get this card for the additional 0.5% cashback. Alliant has made several changes to this card before. So there’s always a risk that the cashback will be reduced or the terms modified. It’s handy to have a backup card in case Alliant changes its mind.
My Money Planet has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. My Money Planet and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers.